Tainted Light
by Jagger Girl
Summary: Instinct told me to distance myself from this girl, nearly my exact opposite. Where I was the dark, the shadows, she was the light, the pure. But some irrational desire within me stirred slowly, as if waking up for the first time in nearly a century.


**Chapter One: Fate **

I hurried my stallion, Midnight, further into the forest. The sunset was providing little light and I'd soon need to make camp.

We met a small creek and I decided that I'd find it's source and camp their for the night. We headed north, following the flowing water. I heard a small waterfall before I saw it.

The last of the thick forest gave way to a small grove, with a waterfall providing water for the creek. I scanned the area with my eyes and gasped.

Near the base of the waterfall was the figure of a girl, apparently passed out. I dismounted Midnight with a stern, "Stay here," and rushed to her.

The girl was leaned against a rock, the waterfall spraying her with mist. Her small body was haphazardly arranged. She had a doll-like appearance, with pale skin and curly white hair. Her small lips were pale pink and her eyelashes long, but somehow I knew that she wasn't wearing make-up.

I scanned her delicate body with my eyes, searching for injury. I gritted my teeth when I saw a wide diagonal slash going from underneath her Hylian ear to underneath her chin.

I removed a cloth and some bandages from my pack. I held the cloth under the waterfall for a moment and then softly cleaned her wound, holding her face at an angle. My hands sparkled in the now twilight, reflecting small diamonds on her skin.

She stirred beneath my touch. "Wha-What?" She asked, her voice small and bell-like.

"Shhh. You're fine. Just please stay still so that I can clean this gash." I replied, softer than I expected to.

"W-What happened?" She asked, looking at me through the corner of her eyes as I continued washing her cut.

Her eyes were a brilliant light lavender. _So unique... so beautiful..._ I thought, but then mentally smacked myself. _I've gone soft! Ugh._

"I found you passed out here." I replied, beginning to bandage her. "Are you hurt anywhere else?"

She seemed to consider that for a moment. "My shoulder feels broken." She said, her nearly invisible eyebrows furrowing.

I grimaced and finished dressing her cut. "Lean forward so that I may see it." I instructed softly.

She leaned forward, placing her small hands on the wet ground to support her. I gently examined the shoulder she'd indicated, and a small growl escaped my lips.

"It's dislocated." I shuddered. "I'll need to pop it back into place."

She groaned softly. "It's going to hurt." She stated blankly.

I shook my head, pulling a potion from my bag."Not if you drink this first." I said, holding the vial in front of her face.

Her large eyes narrowed a shade. "What is it?" She asked, delicately taking it from me.

"A potion to knock you out. You won't feel any pain."

"O-Okay." She said, her hand shaking slightly. She lifted the vial to her lips and downed the entire potion in one swift motion. Her eyes fluttered closed. I caught her falling body before she could land face first.

_I can't believe she trusted me!_ I thought with amazement. _Dark Link! I could easily take advantage of her body..._ I saw my vision go red from anger at that thought. _I would never... she's just so delicate._ I shook my head, clearing it.

I grimaced and relocated her shoulder, which popped sickeningly. I leaned her body back against the cold rock and walked to Midnight, who had stayed exactly where I'd told him to.

"Good boy," I said, stroking his mane. I removed his saddle and bridle, allowing him freedom, knowing that he would stay with me throughout the night.

I set up a small camp in the middle of the clearing quickly, laying out an extra blanket for the girl. I lay mine at the opposite side of the small fire.

I went back to her and picked her up gently, bridal style. Her eyes opened and she gasped. I smiled down at her.

"I never did catch your name." I said softly.

After a few minutes silence she said, "Namina." She paused again. "What's yours?"

"Dark Link." I replied, fearing her reaction.

"That's a long name. Can I just call you Dark?" She asked, eyes half closed.

"Whatever suits you, I guess." I set her down on her blanket. "Try and get some sleep." I whispered, turning toward my make-shift bed.

"Where are you going?" She asked, fear in her eyes.

"To sleep," I said, raising my eyebrows questioningly. _How is she not afraid of me? She must not be from around here... but she's Hylian... Hm._

"All the way over there?" She asked, her small frame shaking.

I sighed. "I'll be right back." I walked over to my blanket and took it over to her, laying it a few feet from her.

"Happy?" I asked sarcastically.

"Yes," she replied contently, not detecting the sarcasm in my voice.

I laughed lightly and lay down, staring up at the stars. Namina shivered slightly beside me. I sighed and pulled off my cloak.

I propped myself up on my elbow. "Here," I said, handing her my cloak.

"Th-Thank you." She pulled my cloak on, making her appear even smaller. "But won't you get cold?" She asked, playing with the cloth in her hands.

I smiled at her concern. "I'll be fine. Goodnight, Namina." I lay back down, resting my head on my hands.

"Goodnight, Dark. Thank you." She whispered.

* * *

><p><em>Ganon loomed over me. "You want to exist outside my Realm, correct?"<em>

_I nodded meekly and replied, "Yes, master."_

_"You failed me last time." He struck my face, creating gashes from his spiked glove._

_"I promise, - nay, I swear – that I will defeat the Hero this time." My voice burned with passion._

_"I'm not taking the chance this time, Dark." He grabbed my wrist and twisted._

_I screamed in pain. He punched me in the stomach with so much force that I vomited blood. He laughed darkly and knocked me unconscious with a backhand._

* * *

><p>I woke with a start. <em>That was one of the more violent dreams...<em> I gasped when I took in my surroundings.

Namina was in my arms, her face pressed against my chest. Her icy skin surprised me so much that I nearly shouted. She stirred lightly.

"Dark?" She asked in a whisper.

"Namina? Do you know how this happened?" I asked, gesturing to her body in my arms.

She blushed. "No. I woke up because you were shouting."

"I was shouting?" I asked, raising my eyebrows.

She nodded into my tunic. "You said, 'Please, please stop. I don't deserve this, I won't fail again.'" She stared up at me, her lavender eyes filled with concern. "Were you having a nightmare?"

"Oh." I replied softly. "I suppose I was..."

She placed her hands on top of each other against my chest, propping her face up. "Do you want to talk about it?" She asked.

I shook my head. "No."

"Okay. I just want you to know that I'm here for you, Dark. You seem to need someone like that. Someone to listen." She looked away, embarrassment colouring her voice.

"Thank you." I replied, puzzled at her assumption. _I need someone to listen? Why would I need that?_

She shivered lightly and pressed her face back into my chest. Her skin was freezing. Concern washed over me.

"Are you alright, Namina?" I asked.

"Huh?" She asked, surprised. "Oh, I'm fine. Just tired."

"You're so cold..." I murmured.

"I'm always cold." She replied quickly.

I raised an eyebrow disbelievingly. "Are you sure you're not sick?"

She nodded and softly sighed. "I'm okay, Dark. Just really sleepy. Can we stay like this?"

Instinct told me to distance myself from this girl, nearly my exact opposite. Where I was the dark, the shadows, she was the light, the pure. But some irrational desire within me stirred slowly, as if waking up for the first time in nearly a century.

I tightened my arms around her waist slightly. "Of course." I replied with a soft smile.

"Goodnight, again, Dark." She whispered.

I laughed quietly and closed my eyes, instantly falling asleep.

* * *

><p>"Namina?" I asked the next morning as I packed up camp. "Do you have a plan on where to go from here?" I asked, hoping against hope that she didn't.<p>

"Not really. I don't know this region very well." She replied, brushing Midnight. He neighed happily.

"What region are you from?"

"Snowpeak." She replied after some time. "I was hoping to find my way back there, actually..."

I grinned charmingly. "I could take you, if you so desire."

She returned my smile, her teeth glittering. "Oh, would you really?

I bowed. "Of course, ma'am."

She ran up to me and crushed me into a hug with a small amount of force. I chuckled and patted her head.

"Shall we get going?" I asked, mounting Midnight. I held out a hand to her.

"Yes, please." She took the hand I offered. I lifted her up onto the saddle effortlessly. She wrapped her arms around my waist and pressed her face against my shoulder blade.

"Don't get too comfortable back there..." I muttered with a smile.

* * *

><p>After a full day of hard riding, Namina, Midnight, and I were completely drained and ready for some rest. After setting up camp underneath a tree in the middle of Hyrule Field, I let Midnight lose to do what he pleased.<p>

Namina stared at me. "Why did you do that?" She cried in confusion.

I laughed. "He comes back, always." I shrugged and sat down to eat. I handed her a piece of bread and she took it.

"Oh." She took a bit of the bread. "Thanks... for everything." She murmured.

"You're welcome. It's actually quite nice having a traveling companion." I commented. "Not as lonely."

She smiled. "I told you so."

"When?" I asked, grinning.

She sighed dramatically. "Oh well, I guess if you can't remember..."

"Please, enlighten me, o wise one." I stifled my laughter.

She giggled, but then said in a soft voice, "when you had your nightmare last night..."

I shook my head roughly, trying to prevent myself from remembering the dream. But I did. I felt a phantom pain in my cheek and raised my hand to it defensively.

"I'm sorry." She murmured, turning away from me.

I shook my head again. "It's not your fault. I just had some bad... experiences, you might say, in the past."

She stared into my eyes. I cringed, knowing that she would see hate in their blood-red colour.

"I find the phrase 'live in the present' a lot easier to follow if you've had a questionable past." She commented with a small smile.

"You speak from experience?" I asked, raising my voice slightly so that it was a question.

She nodded and pointed to herself. "Half Sheikah," she said as if she expected me not to know what a Sheikah was.

My eyes widened in shock, but then I smacked my forehead lightly. _Don't be a hypocrite, Dark. Strange is your middle name._

"But your eyes..." I said, trailing off.

"My mother's side of the family had sky blue eyes. Blue plus red equals purple," she said with a laugh at her horrible logic.

"So, how old are you? I mean, if your father was a true Sheikah, that means he was quite old and..." I clapped my hand over my mouth, preventing myself from rambling more.

She laughed softly, but waited a time before answering. "Seventeen. My dad's family was good at hiding."

I laughed with her, enjoying her musical voice. But inside me, a thought chewed at my brain.

_How can she be half Sheikah? She's so delicate... I can't see her as a warrior, much less a ruthless fighting machine._

She caught the look in my eye and understood. "I'm just gentle, I guess. All the warrior blood's been diluted in me or something."

I nodded. "So are your parents still alive?" I asked, hoping this wasn't a touchy subject.

"My dad is. And my mum's mother is, but my mum died a few years back." I saw a crystal-like tear fall from her eye. I immediately cursed myself for asking such a blunt question.

"And they are at Snowpeak?" I asked.

"Yes. We have a small cottage near the abandoned mansion." She whispered after hesitating for a moment.

"I'll get you home, don't worry." I assured her, puzzled by the far-off look in her eyes.

"Thank you, Dark. I don't know if I'll ever be able to repay you." She stared into my eyes.

I laughed. "You can start with one small thing. Come over here – you're shivering."

She smiled and walked to me on all fours. Her completely white outfit still remained without stain, and it puzzled me. However, such trivial thoughts were banished from my mind when I took her in my arms.

She pressed her face against my shadowy tunic, wrinkling her nose.

"Dark," she asked, "why do you always wear black?"

I considered it for a moment, as I never really had before. "It's the only colour I really even remotely like."

She nodded, her eyes slowly closing. I kissed the top of her head and placed my hands behind my head, readying for sleep.

She was asleep in nearly five minutes, but a sudden noise alerted me. I scanned the area and saw my reflection – Link, staring at Namina.

"What did you do to Namina?" He asked, drawing his sword.

"Nothing." I replied, gently removing myself from underneath her.

"I don't believe you, Dark. What did you do?" He glared at me, anger in his eyes.

Namina stirred, chilled by the lack of my body. She looked up and saw my reflection – my perfect half, and her eyes grew wide.

"Dark?" She whimpered. "Who is this?"

Link nearly growled. "Namina, it's me, Link. What did he do to you?"

She frowned. "Who? And Dark hasn't done anything to me..."

"Link, she has a slight case of amnesia." I said. "I've noticed that it takes her a while to answer questions like her name and her family."

She shrugged. "I'm just a slow thinker."

I groaned. "Don't try to pass it off as that, Namina. You're suffering from memory loss."

Link sheathed his sword. "Namina, you're from Ordon, remember?"

She shook her head and said stubbornly, "Snowpeak."

I nodded, she was confirming my story and not the hero's. "That's what she told me before you showed up," I informed him with an evil grin.

"You tampered with her memory!" He shouted, stepping closer to me.

Namina whimpered. "I don't know! I think Dark's right, I have some kind of memory loss."

"And what makes you suddenly believe that?" I asked, afraid of her answer.

"One minute, I think I'm from Snowpeak, the next, Ordon!" She rubbed her forehead.

"Perhaps sleep would help the matter." I said, walking to her and gently lying her back. "I'll be back when he's gone," I added in a whisper.

She faintly smiled and closed her eyes. "Thank you, Dark."

_She believes me unconditionally! I thought with a rush of joy. She doesn't trust the hero!_

I turned to the hero and saw him staring at Namina like a blind man who'd seen the sun for the first time.

"Who is she, Dark?" He asked in awe. "She's so beautiful."

"You just said you knew her, that she was from Ordon!" I smacked him across the face.

He rubbed his cheek where I'd struck him. "I don't know what possessed me to say that, but Dark," he became serious, "I've never seen her before in my life."

I nodded. "Then you should leave. You've confused her enough."

He blushed and looked down. "Fine. 'Bye, Dark."

I went back over to Namina and wrapped my arms around her, sharing my little warmth. She stirred slightly and automatically adjusted to my touch.

I slept better that night than any other I could recall.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Cookies to anyone who can find the two Twilight references!<strong>

**Namina - nah-min-ah **

**Please review!**


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